WELCOME

~ The pieces are all sewn together, stitched with love.........and a quilt tells a story and the story is our past ~

The Arrowood family immigrated from England to Maryland in the 1700's. They went south, eventually settling in the mountains of North Carolina. Later , some went further south, into the Piedmont of North Carolina, in search of work and a better way of life.

I am in search of my family.

I search for those that came before me, and lived their lives as best they could. I am in search of their stories, how they lived, and how they loved.

I shared this love of seeking the past with my Dad, sharing each new finding with him, the thrill in his heart intermingling with mine. I continue this search in his honor, and hope to know these people of ours when I join up with them all in heaven.

~ Steve Lewis Arrowood 1932-2008 ~

Come with me, back to a simpler time and place. A place far removed from the hectic pace of today. To a time when life was hard, but the rewards were great. When your quality of life was determined by your own sweat, your own toil, and your own ingenuity.

Would you like a glass of sweet tea? Let's sit out on the porch where we will catch the sweetly scented breeze of summertime. Maybe Grandma will fry up some of her wonderful chicken... Time slows here.

"We shape our lives not by what we carry with us, but what we leave behind."

~You live as long as you are remembered.~

"Our most treasured family heirlooms are our sweet family memories. " Author: Unknown

"But those who came before us will teach you. They will teach you from the wisdom of former generations."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arrowood Family

Monday, December 7, 2009

A Preacher Man named Theodore ~

Theodore Arrowood

By Eddie Le SueurContributornewsroom@johnsoncitypress.com

Theodore Roosevelt Arrowood climbed the steps to the podium.He stood, motionless and silent before the throng. Those preceding him had exhibited their talent for song, dance and country music, and now it was his turn.

He grasped the makeshift podium as the bespectacled announcer exclaimed, “And now, ladies and gentlemen, Theodore Arrowood will preach for us.”

The orator took a deep breath. “My b-b-beloved brethren,” he stuttered to a start. “I am a unlarnt, hard-shell Baptist preacher, of whom you’ve no doubt hearn afore, and I now appear here to expound the Scripters and point out the narrow way which leads from a vain world to the streets of Jaroolsalem.”

The crowd roared to laughter and applause for the 12-year-old speaker, their fellow student from the Poplar Station community of Mitchell County, N.C.

Theodore was following in the footsteps of his beloved father, Sam. He had watched and listened, and rehearsed his recitation for over a month, according to his own son, Henry, who recounted the story of Theodore’s bravest moment nearly a century before.

“He thought he was ready, but when all those eyes focused on him, he was scared,” Henry said. “The fear of making a fool of himself and embarrassing his father was excruciating.”

When Theodore reached the end of his sermon, the audience sprang to its feet, clapping and whistling.“Little Theodore” was a hit. But they had no idea where his newfound courage would lead.

Though he might have been scared when he started, Theodore became comfortable behind the podium. In time, his voice would ring out to believers, and the depth of his commitment to them, and the needy, would be difficult to measure by modern standards.

Theodore was ordained as a Brethren Church minister in 1936 and preached a circuit of five churches — plus a sixth on that hard-to-cover fifth Sunday — in Western North Carolina and East Tennessee for the next two decades.

He did not depend on the churches for his livelihood. Instead he also worked full-time jobs at Southern Maid (Foremost) Dairy and Tri-Cities Beverages in Johnson City.

The path of his preaching led him to Reecie Tipton, one of eight children from a family in Limestone Cove, and they were married when she was 18. The Arrowoods had seven children — Mary, Teddy, Betty Lou, Joseph, Henry, Nancy and Brenda.

In the early years, Reecie would pack up their children on Saturday and travel with him to wherever he was preaching. Over time, that became too hard to do and she reluctantly let him “go it on his own,” Henry said.

Theodore and Reecie found another calling, almost by accident.

Reecie began taking their children to church at the Salvation Army while Theodore was away.

Soon he joined them on Wednesday nights, and before long “fell in love with the organization,” Henry said.

“It started with a tent revival that was supposed to last one week, but the crowds kept growing night after night. Because it lasted so long, other preachers were brought in to keep things going. Daddy was one of them.

“A Mr. Range, who was a prominent community leader and philanthropist, was impressed with dad’s ability to ‘speak the people’s language.’ ”

Range saw the need and gave the money to build the outpost in the middle of the Johnson City community known as Maupin Row. Theodore gave up his churches and was commissioned as Corps Sergeant Major, the chief lay officer, and Reecie’s dream was fulfilled when she and her husband commenced their new ministry.

For the next quarter-century, they served the Salvation Army. Theodore became a fixture in the community, especially during the holidays, when he rang the familiar Salvation Army bell, raising money for those in need.

Theodore continued to serve even to his later years, when health problems made it difficult for him to stand. He became a legend as the top collector of charity for the Salvation Army drive and participated in his final one less than a month before he was “promoted to Glory” in December 1994.

****************************************************Theodore Arrowood was the son of Samuel Arrowood,Jr.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Do Something Big - Share Shaq's message

Current Time ~

The Arrowood/Arwood Family

Thanks so very much for all of the wonderful feedback I have gotten from everyone! If you are related or somehow have a tie to this family, please leave a comment for me. I welcome any additional info and absolutely love collecting pictures! If you have anything about this family you would like posted, I will gladly do so. Please, leave me a note! This has been, and continues to be, such a blessing to me.